Uzeyir Hajibeyov

Uzeyir Hajibeyov was born on September 18, 1885, in Agjabadi and raised in Shusha, the musical cradle of Karabakh. On January 25, 1908, at the Taghiyev Theatre in Baku, he premiered Leyli and Majnun, synthesizing European classical operatic forms with Azerbaijani modal mugham—creating the first opera in the entire Islamic Orient.

Hajibeyov founded the Baku Academy of Music, established the Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra, and wrote groundbreaking musical comedies like Arshin Mal Alan (The Cloth Peddler) and the epic opera Koroghlu. He also composed both the national anthem of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic and the modern National Anthem of Azerbaijan.